I forgot to add, yes, this is pathological nonsense. Murray has leaped to conclusions, as he often does. He has made an assertion without stopping to think for a moment, and without considering whether it might be plausible or even possible. He claimed that an electric heater of 3 to 5 kW is "small" and can be "hidden." Anyone who has so much as glanced at an electric heater of this capacity will know his assertion is preposterous.
This is not "pragmatic," which is defined as: "Dealing with things sensibly and realistically in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical considerations." A sliver of practical knowledge is enough to confirm that a 3 kW heater is a large object that cannot be hidden, and is instantly recognizable. This is not skeptical. A skeptic always questions his own assumptions first and tries to discover whether they are physically possible. As I predicted, the pathological skeptics will continue as before, drifting ever farther into cloud cuckoo land, making up ever more convoluted fairytales that anyone can refute in a few minutes. This never bothers people like Murray, because -- we must grant -- he has a fertile imagination unfettered by practical knowledge or the constraints of reality, and he can make up new fairytales even faster than anyone can refute them. He will grasp at any straw to avoid facing the truth. - Jed
